The US markets ended mostly in green on Wednesday as upbeat earnings news overshadowed concerns about U.S.-China trade tensions and lingering worries about valuations. Trading sentiments were upbeat as investment banking giant Morgan Stanley (MS) reported better than expected third quarter results and surged 4.7 percent to a record closing high. Further, shares of Bank of America and ASML showed significant strength after reporting good numbers. Besides, investors remained optimistic after Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a report this morning showing New York manufacturing activity has seen a significant turnaround in the month of October. The New York Fed said its general business conditions index surged to a positive 10.7 in October after plunging to a negative 8.7 in September, with a positive reading indicating growth. Meanwhile, street had expected the index to climb to a negative 1.8.
On the sectoral front, gold stocks moved sharply higher as the price of the precious metal continues to soar to record highs, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 4.1 percent to a record closing high. Moreover, substantial strength was visible among computer hardware and semiconductor stocks, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surging by 4.0 percent and 3.0 percent, respectively.
Nasdaq climbed 148.38 points or 0.66 percent to 22,679.08 and S&P 500 rose 26.75 points or 0.4 percent to 6,671.06, while Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 17.15 points or 0.04 to 46,253.31.
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